PacSci EMC recently participated as a finalist in NASA’s second iTech
Forum, competing to have their innovative idea selected as one of the top
10 in a yearlong initiative to find and foster innovative solutions
with the potential to benefit NASA and the nation in the future.

The teams competed against entrepreneurs presenting their proposed
solutions to tough technology challenges to judges consisting of NASA’s
chief technologists, space industry leaders and potential
investors. Hosted by the National Institute of Aerospace in Hampton,
Virginia, from July 10-13, the forum brought together finalists from
across the U.S. to compete and showcase their innovations.

"NASA iTech is unique in that it reveals groundbreaking technology
solutions and provides a catalyst for industry investors, government
agencies and small businesses to collaborate with the innovators to
mature their technologies for both space and commercial applications,”
said Kira Blackwell, Innovation program executive in the Office of the
Chief Technologist at NASA Headquarters in Washington.

The cutting edge technologies presented by the finalists may solve some
of the most challenging problems on Earth and have the potential to
solve some of NASA’s deep space exploration challenges. The technology
focus areas for NASA iTech Cycle 2 were: Autonomy, Big Data - Data
Mining and Machine Learning, Medical Systems and Operations and
Radiation Protection and Mitigation. An additional category, X-Factor
Innovations: Solutions for Unspecified Future Challenges, was added for
Cycle 2 to allow for groundbreaking ideas or technology that may not
align precisely with another specific focus area, but could still make a
significant impact on future exploration efforts.

PacSci EMCsubmitted its Modular Architecture Propulsion System
(MAPS™) under “X-Factor Innovations: Solutions for Unspecified Future
Challenges.”MAPS takes the equivalent energy found in a tank of
toxic liquid fuel and quantizes it into an array of sealed, solid
propellant rocket motors safely commanded by a low power, Smart
Energetics Architecture (SEA™) bus. MAPS “plug and play” simplicity
eliminates tanks, valves, plumbing, and large power supplies while
greatly enhancing customer workflows. MAPS is fully operational in 5
milliseconds with a 10+ year on-orbit life.

“The quality of the top ten finalists was eye-opening and judging among
the top entrants was extremely close,” said Blackwell. “Our goal is for
iTech to provide a catalyst for industry investors, government agencies
and small businesses to collaborate with the best innovators to mature
their technologies for both space and commercial applications and PacSci
EMC along with our other our top ten finalists have a bright future
ahead.”

PacSci EMC has a deep history serving both manned and unmanned space
exploration and satellite missions. Our products are used in all phases
of space flight beginning with ground-based operations through
lift-off/boost, solid rocket booster jettison, payload fairing
separation, booster separation, second stage flight, payload separation
and flight termination. We have put this expertise to work creating
MAPS™, an innovative and highly reliable, non-pressurized, solid
propellant, “plug and play” propulsion system for use on CubeSats and
SmallSats. For over 65 years, our customers have relied on our expertise
and dedication to safety and quality. Discover more: https://www.psemc.com/.